Page 1 of 1

heater help please

Posted: 20 Aug 2014, 01:04
by fairgroundfish
Just moved house and new house is colder, my old one kept the tank at around 30°C so never needed a heater, but now im lucky to get it to 24°C. My tank is approx 123ltrs. I need to get a heater. Was wonderung if anyone can recomend one? Tia x

Re: heater help please

Posted: 20 Aug 2014, 07:33
by Bas Pels
What a heater basically does, is add heat which the tank has lost. That is, heat is lost only through the outer surfaces of the tank.

Were one to keep a long tank and a short one with the same liters, the long one, with more outer surface, will need more heat then the short one. But insolating also helps

As a general rule, each square meter of a tank will loose 3 to 6 watts per degree Celsius. That is, your tank needs to be 6 degrees warmer then is would be without heater, so you will need 18 to 36 watts per square meter. Than, do remember the heater has a thermostate - if the outcome is 72 watts, you can use a 100 or 150 watt heater. So is can rest.

What brand? I have no clue what's sold in the UK.

Re: heater help please

Posted: 20 Aug 2014, 17:58
by Brian2014
I use Elite submersible heaters on my tanks have always found them to be good quality

Re: heater help please

Posted: 20 Aug 2014, 20:08
by fairgroundfish
Well i nipped into pets at home today they only stock the delta therm ones. I think it was a 200w one i needed, cant get it till next week tho. Anyone used that brand ive heard goid and bad things about them...

Re: heater help please

Posted: 28 Aug 2014, 06:14
by David R
Wow, must have been a big drop in the temp of your house! I'd look at insulating the back and sides of the tank with polystyrene if possible, might be cheaper than a new heater. Otherwise, I've had good mileage out of the Eheim/Jager heaters.

Re: heater help please

Posted: 28 Aug 2014, 08:07
by Mol_PMB
I've had lots of problems with the delta therm heaters. I'd second Eheim/Jäger. Buy online and it'll be cheaper than the delta therm from P@H!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Re: heater help please

Posted: 28 Aug 2014, 18:42
by kvnbyl
jaegers seem to be the best over the long haul, 3-5 watts per gallon has been the accepted rule for a long time. you are better off with 2 100 watt heaters (for example) then one 200 watt . this is so if one heater fails the tank will not get too cool, likewise if the heater sticks on it gives you more time before fried fish set in.